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that the mussels are OK to eat, place them in a sink or large bowl of cold water. Throw away any that do not close when tapped against a hard surface. Drain the mussels and remove the beards.
    2 . Heat a large, heavy-based sauté pan or shallow saucepan over a high heat. Add a good glug of oil and fry the spring onions, shallot, celery, garlic, chilli, thyme and bay leaf together. Cook for 2 minutes, shaking the pan, until the shallot and celery start to become tender.
    3 . Add the mussels to the pan and shake over a very high heat for about 30 seconds. Cover tightly with a lid and leave to steam for 1–2 minutes, shaking the pan now and again. When the mussels begin to open add the vermouth and wine and continue to cook, uncovered, for a further 1–2 minutes to reduce the liquid. Cover and cook for a final 30–60 seconds until the mussels have completely opened. Discard any that remain shut at the end of cooking.
    4 . Add the crème fraîche and parsley to the pan, then taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary. Cover the pan and shake to combine the flavours. Remove the lid, stir, and serve immediately with plenty of crusty bread.







FOR LOTS OF PEOPLE,
A MEAL ISN’T A MEAL
WITHOUT A PIECE OF
MEAT AS ITS CENTREPIECE.
    My generation was brought up on ‘meat and two veg’, and it’s a tradition that lives on in houses up and down the country. I still remember the Sunday roasts I sat down to as a child, but the rest of the week would be punctuated by meat of some sort too, whether it was a piece of gammon, a cottage pie, or the occasional steak as a treat.
    What has changed is our understanding of what constitutes good meat. In the old days, in the absence of chemical fertilisers and growth-promoting hormones, all meat was by definition slow-reared and organic. But things went a bit wobbly in the second half of the last century, when speed and efficiency took priority over compassion and taste. In a world with a fast-expanding population and ever more mouths to feed, I can see how that happened, but I’m pleased that many farmers have started once again to value slow-growing traditional breeds over their more intensively reared cousins. The rewards in terms of animal welfare and taste are amazing. There’s a price implication in that, of course there is: free-range and organic animals will always cost a premium, but it’s fantastic that we once again have the choice.
    I don’t want to get on my high horse and tell you to buy only this or that type of meat because we all have budgets we have to live by. What I will say is that personally I’d rather eat meat less often, but buy better-quality meat when I do, than eat cheap meat every day. Everything in an animal’s life, from the moment it is born to the way it is slaughtered, will have an effect not just on its well-being but on its flavour. If a producer is having to cut corners to keep the price down, the end result is bound to suffer, and as a chef I know my cooking can only ever be as good as the raw ingredients I start with.
    Does that mean I always buy organic? Not at all. Organic is a useful label that suggests more careful husbandry but it can only ever be a guide. You can get good organic farmers and you can get bad organic farmers. What is far more important is to find a supplier you can trust, someone who knows all his animals and wants to do his best by them, who really cares what you think of his produce. That way you are sure to end up with better-quality meat. I remember visiting my chicken supplier in Essex and asking if he had thought of upgrading from free-range to organic. ‘Why would I want to do that?’ he asked. ‘I already treat my birds the best I possibly can, and I don’t need a certificate to prove it. You can taste it in every mouthful.’ Equally, he wanted to know that if one of his birds did get sick, he’d be able to give her antibiotics to make her better. That’s what you want. The very definition of compassionate